Five Tips to Find Cheap Flights to London
Follow these 5 tips from Hopper to find cheap flights to London and you could save up to $928 per round-trip ticket!
Hopper Editors - Thu Oct 26 2017
Nobody's flying to London for a relaxing break, but it seems everybody is flying to London – so what are they looking for? The United Kingdom's biggest and most exciting city has everything to offer the energetic tourist or enterprising businessman, from a wildly diverse nightlife to world class cafes, from kooky and bizarre museums to international art houses. And let's not forget the potential for a Wills and Kate sighting... If you're among the millions who are planning a trip to London and want to make sure you get a truly great deal among the many on offer, then look no further than our handy hints for booking cheap flights to London.
Photo by Davide D'Amico/Flickr.
1. The cheapest time to book a flight to London is at least 13 days, saving up to $820
If you choose to fly to London's biggest airport, London Heathrow, then you'll land the best deal by booking around 13 days in advance, when you can save up to $820 relative to the face value of a ticket bought on the day of departure. If you're reluctant to leave your booking so late, then it's best to book between 40 and 50 days ahead of departure, where prices remain at around $800 cheaper than an on-the-day purchase. The week before departure, the price of flights to London typically increas dramatically.
2. The cheapest time to buy a flight to London is on a Wednesday, saving up to $26
Pick yourself up out of the midweek slump and book your round-trip ticket to London on Wednesday to ensure the very best value deal. Between Thursday and Sunday prices are consistently at their highest so if you can't make time on a Wednesday then aim to book on Monday or Tuesday. $26 might not sound like a huge savings, but it’s per ticket and it'll cover at least part of your transport costs from the airport to the city – London's an expensive spot, so every little saving will inevitably prove useful.
3. The cheapest day to fly to London is on a Tuesday, saving up to $33
Tuesday is by far the cheapest day to make the trip to London, so save on your flights while making a week of it and enjoy the lull before the storm that is England's capital on a Friday night. There are several large scale and hundreds of small scale events throughout London on any given night, so arriving earlier in the week doesn't have to mean a any quiet nights in. Wednesday and Thursday are also relatively cheap days to fly into London, but Friday is predictably the most expensive day to fly, and one of the busiest days for arrivals into London.
4. Return on a Tuesday to save $49
Enjoy a round week in London from Tuesday to Tuesday to save up to $82 in total. You'll doubtless be glad of that extra Monday off to recover from the weekend festivities London has to offer! Friday is the most expensive day to leave London, at $49 more expensive than a Tuesday, while Monday and Wednesday are reasonably well priced. Mondays and Tuesdays are good days to make the most of London without the weekend crowds and the added volume of European weekend vacationers, so a delayed exit after the weekend allows vacationers to make the very most of their sightseeing time in relative peace.
5. Use Hopper’s When to Fly/Buy Reports to check if you’re getting a good deal
Hopper's Fly/Buy Reports gives you the full rundown on when to buy and where to fly. Just enter your departure city or airport and your planned arrival to get ahead of the travel game and ensure you're getting the very best deal on your flight. Unlike the tips in this article, which are applicable to London in the general sense, the reports actually give specific money-saving tips for flights to London from your home airport.